U.S. taxpayers now own around 34 percent in Citigroup. Reuters said that while a few technical details still remain, the bank has completed a months-long effort to convert preferred shares held by the government into common stock. Citigroup yesterday completed two exchange offers to bolster the capital position of the nation’s third-biggest bank, widely considered the most troubled large U.S. lender. Public investors, private investors and the government swapped close to $58 billion of preferred securities into common stock of the New York-based bank. Citigroup has said the swaps would leave it with more than 21 billion shares, up from 5.51 billion at the end of June. The $25 billion swapped by the government is part of its $45 billion infusion, the Troubled Asset Relief Program. Another $20 billion of that sum will remain in the form of preferred shares, throwing off an 8 percent annual dividend.
U.S. Becomes Citigroup’s Largest Shareholder
Third largest American bank completed two exchange offers to bolster its capital provisions
July 31, 2009